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ill titleSpreads to Get Ideas Moving

Chances are that when you think of tarot cards you do not think of writing, but rather the divining of the future. Many churches are against their use for that very reason, including my own; so why then would I advocate them for the purpose of writing and even breaking the dreaded writer’s block? The answer is because they work to get ideas flowing.

The History of Tarot

Playing cards started to enter Europe during the 14th century from Egypt; they were then Latinized from ‘Scimitars,’ ‘Polo Sticks,’ ‘Cups,’ and ‘Coins’ to ‘Swords,’ ‘Staves,’ ‘Cups’ and ‘Coins.’ Italians created the first tarot deck roughly around the 15th century; these decks featured allegorical images. Originally, they were not used for divination and record does not exist to shown when the switch was made until the 18th century. Mostly, they were used as playing cards.

How it Works

The Cards

So what does this have to do with writing? First, we need to look at how the cards work. I own ‘The Medieval Scapini Tarot,’ and each card holds various meanings, which are shown in the nifty booklet that comes with the deck; each card also has a reversed meaning as well, which comes into play when the image on the card appears to be upside. For example, let us look at the ‘Death card.’ The card can mean several things from transformation and rebirth to decay, ruin, and illness. When reversed, however it might mean anything from stagnation and slow changes to narrow avoidance of a serious accident. Now you know the basics of how the cards work, however note that each deck contains its own variations.

Spreads

pennotebookNow that you understand how to read cards, you need to learn about spreads, a manner of putting cards in a certain order to produce a reading. There are countless spreads from traditional to modern, and they are found easily on the internet or in the booklet that usually comes with a brand new tarot deck. I highly recommend googling for spreads. My personal favorite (for writing purposes only) is the smiley face/character creation spread by Mr. Sluagh, which takes on the form of… well, a smiley face. Even if you have already created your character, I find this spread is useful in getting to know the character better or determining possible endings for the character, especially if you are stuck or uncertain. Here is what the Character Creation spread looks like and what each position stands for:

2…………3

……1……

4….5….6…7

1.) Concept: is the character's basic position in the story and in her own fictitious existence 2.) Impulse: The character's wants, needs, instincts, dementias, etc 3.) Ideal: is the character's beliefs, goals, hopes, fears, morals, etc 4.) The Past: How the character's saga began 5.) The Interim: What went on between the Past and the Present; how the character got where he is now 6.) The Present: The character's current lot in life 7.) The Future: What is likely to happen to the character in the future

Once again, feel free to look up others spreads or create your own; there is no right or wrong way.

Readings, Bringing it all Together

We have our cards and our spread now let us put it together. Shuffle your deck and randomly select seven cards, placing them into the spread’s pattern as you do. You will then flip over the card in the first position, read the card’s meaning in your deck’s booklet, and then see how that meaning relates to your character’s concept; you will do this for all the cards/positions. This can be hard as certain decks only give a list of words, leaving you to select the ones that seem to fit, seem possible, or are just too great to pass up. Just remember as you go through whatever spread you choose, you are not confined to what the deck/spread says when it comes to your book and characters; the cards are tools to get the thought process going and should not take over your book!

Tarot is fun to do with a friend. One person serves as the questioner and the other as the reader. I recommend doing it in pairs as your friend can also throw out ideas that might be useful as you brainstorm; always pick a trusted friend not someone you would not trust with your book.

Example

Here we have an example of the Character Creation spread to give you an idea on how it works. We will call the character Sam.

1st CardFirst, I choose seven cards at random; my friend says that when she does tarot she settles on cards that seem to beg her to pick them. After selecting them, I, then, lay them in the smiley face pattern before flopping over the card in the first position (the nose); it is ‘The Lovers’ reversed. I get out my booklet, and this is what it says: failure to meet the test, unreliability, separation, frustration with love or marriage, interference from others, fickleness, untrustworthiness, unwise plans. So far, we can discern that Sam is a trickster of sorts, or a person with ill luck.

2nd CardNext, we flip the second position (the left eye) and get ‘Two of Coins’ reversed. The possible impulses of our character are literary ability, Agility in handling matters, simulated enjoyment, and forced gaiety. From this, we could say that Sam might be the type of person who goes to the bar and gets drunk for pleasure only to find that the pleasure does not last.

3rd CardFlipping over the third position, we receive ‘The Falling Tower.’ Sam’s ideals are shown to be complete and sudden change, breakdown of old beliefs, calamity, misery, terrible loss, etc. These are probably fears of Sam’s… though he might be an individual who wants change or hopes for the distress of others; it is completely up to the author to decide.

4th CardNow we proceed to the mouth, starting with the far left first. I get ‘The Sun’ reversed. In the past, Sam has been unhappy, been filled with loneliness, maybe even a broken engagement or marriage, etc.


5th CardIn the interim position, we have ‘The Devil’ reversed. In-between the past and present, Sam appears to have been released from a bad influence (bondage) and was taking the first steps of enlightenment.


6th cardAt the present position, ‘The Ace of Coin’ appears, showing that in the present Sam has attained some gain (probably wealth).



final cardIn the future position, we end with ‘Force.’ In the near or distant future, Sam gains control of his situation and becomes accomplished.



How the Writer Puts It Together

Here is the summary: Sam is a middle-aged man, who fears change after his wife divorces him for deceit. Sam goes to bars constantly seeking enjoyment, but in the morning, he is left empty and alone. Somehow, Sam combats his addiction to alcohol and starts to get his life back together. He decides to write a short story and is able to sell it to a local newspaper. From there, a larger publishing company shows interest, picks up the story, and offers Sam a large sum of money for another.

This is one possible reading of the cards out of several other readings; there is no wrong reading. Everyone is different and have a different way of putting the words together.

Experiences

I have had lots of luck using the smiley face spread to help me get to know my characters or give me some ideas when it comes to what happens to them in the future. Do I always do what the cards say? No! I use them solely as springboards to open up possibilities that I may never have considered before.

I have also shown my friends this spread and a few other spreads, and then ran them through them a few times. For my one friend, running through the spreads was very helpful and helped her break her bout of writer’s block by giving her fresh ideas and possibilities that she could take, leave, or add-to.

Sometimes it is best just to scrap a reading, as you might not be connecting with your character. This happened to another of my friends, who channeled the stereotype of her character rather than her actual character; it was funny to say the least, but unacceptable for her novel. So try doing multiple readings for a character; this can add to or replace a previous reading.

Decks

Llwellyn Tarot DeckThere are tons of various decks to choose from, and just like with spreads, some are traditional, while others are more modern. I recommend shopping around to find the deck that best suits you and your novel. A good place to look is at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble (where I got mine), http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/, or just googling. To give you a idea of some of the variety, look at the following types of decks: Alchemical Tarot, Lunatic Tarot, Lord of the Rings Tarot, Dragon Tarot, Jungian Tarot, Llwellyn Tarot, and so on.

Conclusion

Do not shy away from tarot as it can be a valuable resource to you as a writer; just because you have the cards does not mean you have to divine the future… remember they were playing cards before they were even used for divination. Though they are good resource, I cannot stress this enough: Do not let them dominate your novel and your rights of author. They cannot do the writers job, so do not get lazy.

Good Links…

I highly recommend the following sites:

Sources